Traveling

Hey there! This site is no longer being updated. I'm leaving some of the content up just because. If you'd like to follow what I'm currently up to, please head over to my new site. Thanks! – Meg.

This week, I traveled up to Kings Canyon & Sequoia National Parks twice — first on Thursday with my aunt, second was today with Jeff & Riley.

On Thursday, my aunt and I had planned to hit Hume and then maybe an attraction or two in the parks. Well, she wanted to go to Buck Rock because she had fond memories of going up there with my great-grandma and bringing the fire lookout some fresh fruit. Unfortunately, we were in my aunt’s Ford Focus, which was low on coolant… and low on clearance. Needless to say, we were about three miles short of the lookout before we had to turn around and head home to the valley.

So this morning, Jeff and I decided to take Riley up there since I still had a few more days on my park pass.

Sorry — photos from in the car are super blurry, but you get the gist of it.

This was a rare moment — where Riley actually stayed in the back of the car on her bed. For most of the trip, she was cradled in my arms… asleep.

We went straight to Hume for lunch at the Snack Shop. Riley was excited that Jeff got a burger to share with her 🙂

After lunch, we hit the Hume Market and got some snacks for the rest of the day. Riley hammed it up with a biker club outside the store, she was so disappointed to leave her new fan club members!

Long drive later, we finally got to Buck Rock.

Here’s a panorama of the view from the lookout towards Hume Lake.

Riley helping the Forest Service watch for fires. Her grandaddy was proud of this photo 🙂 Still need to email it to her great-grandad!

It’s 172 stairs up to the lookout — Riley went up about two and called it quits. So, Jeff carried her up and down the stairs! I bet the real lookout dog doesn’t have the ranger carry her!

I do have to admit, Riley was great on the granite trail leading up to the stairs.

Sorry — another super blurry pic — Riley passed out after the hard work of being carried up and down those stairs! She was asleep on her bed long enough to regain the energy to climb up into the front seat and my arms! Where she immediately passed out, again.

We stopped in Hume again to see if one of our friends was home, then went to Grant Grove where we were disappointed to learn the current park ranger hates dogs! There was a sign claiming that dogs aren’t allowed on trails in ANY national parks — which is a total farce, it’s up to the ranger of each park. I totally understand the reasons why — since most dog owners these days seem to be incredibly irresponsible — but it sucks for those of us who are completely responsible! Actually, people in general are completely irresponsible and ignorant :-\ as soon we pulled up, there were people jumping the trail fences to take pictures closer to the trees… not caring that those fences are there for a reason. At least we can still take her on most of the trails in Yosemite!!

So, long story short — all we have to show for Grant Grove is this picture of the two of them next to the twin Sequoia’s in the parking lot.

I’m excited to go back to the parks some more this summer. I LOVE the Buck Rock Campground — it’s pretty deserted compared to the other campgrounds. I converted my week pass to an annual one, so we need to head up there some more!

Riley is taking another nap, and I think I’m going to follow her lead now that this post is done 🙂

Hey there! This site is no longer being updated. I'm leaving some of the content up just because. If you'd like to follow what I'm currently up to, please head over to my new site. Thanks! – Meg.

Jeff and I have some of the dumbest luck in the world, and I love it! When traveling north this last weekend, we stumbled upon Sierra Nevada Brewing Company’s release party for their Ruthless Rye IPA.

But we ordered the Kellerweis…

We had a ton of fun — I’ve never toured a brewery before (Jeff has) and I’m honestly not a beer person… but, the free tasting after our tour definitely helped me figure out what I really dislike in a beer, and what I can… tolerate. At the release party, I did find that I like things made with beer but not so much for drinking. Their “beer cheese” made with the Ruthless Rye was amazing, I’m going to have to replicate it the next time we have people over!

Lots of traveling happening over the next week, lots to share when I have more time! We’re having a great time — poor Jeff is going to get exposed to a LOT of my family he’s never met before. I’m excited 😉 hehe

Hey there! This site is no longer being updated. I'm leaving some of the content up just because. If you'd like to follow what I'm currently up to, please head over to my new site. Thanks! – Meg.

Last Monday, the three of us piled into our car and hit the road. We originally had planned to go kayaking, but after checking the water temperatures online… we realized the snow melt would make kayaking too cold for Riley’s small body. Instead, we decided to drive all of Kaiser Pass Road to Edison Lake. Before, we had always stopped at Mono Hot Springs, ate at the restaurant there… then headed back down the mountain.

The night before we left, I got on the Sierra National Forest’s website to see if there were any sites in the area that we hadn’t been to before. When we travel, Jeff and I love to stop anywhere where we can learn something new. I discovered that the drive from Old Town Clovis to Kaiser Pass is called the Sierra Heritage Scenic Byway, so there’s a name for our all-time favorite drive!! We discovered Kaiser Pass Road a few years ago and have made it our traditional summer drive ever since. Last summer we found out that the road has a special connection to my family, which cemented our tradition.

Riley is the best car-dog ever. When we took her to Shaver Lake last summer to go kayaking, she slept most of the car ride! Being in the car relaxes her, and she craves it. Every time I leave the house, I have to fight to keep her inside. Otherwise she ends up in my passenger seat, along for the ride. This trip was no different, she slept in my arms on the way to Edison. She only held her head out the window for about ten minutes of the drive.

Kaiser Pass Road is not a smooth highway, it’s a single car bumpy road that probably hasn’t been re-paved since it was first paved in the 70’s. Maybe every decade or so they’ll patch up the potholes. But, if your car can handle it, it’s totally worth the views. Riley didn’t care about the bumps, they seemed to put her in an even more relaxed state.

This was our first trip up the road where there was still snow. We were amazed, because it was the end of June and there was still at least a four-foot wall of snow at Kaiser Pass’ summit. This was technically the end of the Scenic Byway, with the option to go to White Bark Vista. We had never been to that vista before, but when we saw the route covered in snow, we realized we’d have to come back later this summer!

The entire drive you can hear and see these tiny waterfalls from the snowmelt. It’s a happy feeling to know that this winter we had an enormous about of snow, because the last few years we’ve been living in a drought. It was also a nice break from the high temperatures we’ve been having back in the Central Valley!

Once we finally got to Edison Lake, we set up on the beach off of the USFS campground past the Vermillion Resort. I’ve been to many beautiful lakes in the Sierras and Cascades, but the privacy we had at Edison Lake trumped them all. I’m sorry Tahoe, Crater Lake, Donner Lake… and all the others… but the loud tourists and cars do affect the experience!

We had the entire beach to ourselves, so we let Riley off her leash for a bit. She never really realized she was off her leash, so she stayed close. Last summer, she wouldn’t go into water voluntarily. This year, she was willingly getting into the water and chasing after the balls I’d throw for her. She mostly wanted to just smell the new smells and sunbathe.

Even though we had both of our lines in the water, we never got a bite. It didn’t matter, we were happy to be alone in a beautiful place.

As the day wore on, our privacy ended when a large group of about five families arrived. We moved to another part of the lake by the boat launch and fished for another hour or so before heading back down the road for dinner.

I can’t wait to go back to Edison Lake, hopefully next time we can camp for a few nights!

Hey there! This site is no longer being updated. I'm leaving some of the content up just because. If you'd like to follow what I'm currently up to, please head over to my new site. Thanks! – Meg.

Several weeks ago, Jeff and I had the opportunity to spend a few days in Reno, NV. On our way back home, we spent the day stopping along Lake Tahoe. It had been over a decade since we had both been to the area, so we decided to enjoy it as much as we could before we really had to go home.

It was absolutely majestic – even for May, there was lots of snow everywhere. Normally when we go to a new area, Jeff researches everything and has a list of possible places to go or activities to do. This trip, he didn’t do any research, so we just drove around the lake and enjoyed the sights!

You don’t really get to experience how large the lake is unless you drive around it. We drove from Incline Village to South Lake Tahoe… which I guess is about 2/3rds of the perimeter of the lake.

For lunch we took it easy and grabbed some random cheeses and crackers and just relaxed at one of the many lakefront parks.

It made me wish we lived closer, and could do this more often. It probably was one of the best picnic lunches I’ve ever had. At home, we just have small reservoirs that are always overrun and crowded by loud boats. None of them are nearly as pretty!!

My favorite part of the drive was the stop where you can look out over Emerald Bay. The island and castle are fun to look at, but the view from the bay is amazing. It’s this tiny little bump on a huge lake, like a little secret.

We wished we had spent more time in the Tahoe and Truckee area, instead of most of our time in Reno. We almost went back just a few weekends later, but gas prices were at their peak and we decided we’ll go later this summer. I can’t wait!

Primary Sidebar

Meet Meg

Hey all! Welcome to Our Misadventures, which is a mix of my personal and business blog. I'm Meg, I'm a full-time social media strategist with a passion for lifting up small businesses and entrepreneurs.

I'm an adventure and travel addict, married to my best friend (cliché but true,) I love good tea all throughout the day – and sometimes relax with a good book. I'm a huge advocate of primal eating & living, and a slave to two small puppy dogs and two round guinea pigs.